The Day to Day
by Japhith
Summary: Series of unconnected oneshot short stories and bits of flash fiction, depicting the day to day lives of the Titans, and the citizens they protect.
1. New Car Blues

The Day to Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Opening Notes – This particular bit of story has been in my head for months, and I've never found a good place to put it in one of my longer stories. Just a fun little flash of life for the auto-enthusiasts of Jump City.

**New Car Blues**

Two men stood at the curb outside an old brownstone in the Green Briar residential area of Jump City, just north of the business district. One of them, a tall young man with sandy blond hair, was beaming proudly at the car parked in front of them and the other man was gaping at it.

"Dude! I knew you were getting a new car, but… damn!"

"I know. I didn't really intend to spend as much as I did, but quality comes at a price you know? And I just got that big raise, and I've been saving, so… why not?"

"Shit yeah! Dude, can I drive it?"

"No. This is too much car for you." The sandy haired owner of the vehicle laughed, "Check it out; 2007135i BMW Coupe. N50 type six cylinder engine with 306 horses. Zero to sixty in 5.3 seconds."

His friend let out a low whistle, "Damn. Top speed?"

"155 miles per hour."

"Wow… so it's got a ton of power but it's still street legal. Nice."

"You bet your ass it's nice. The spoiler is a custom job, and so are the headlights, taillights, body-kit, and paint job. The paint is an iridescent blue #344… costs $2400 a gallon. I've got road effects installed under the side skirts in a pale gold that matches the window tinting. And the sound system… man, let me tell you, this thing can kick out some BASS!"

"Alright, that's it." The jealous friend grinned, "Let's go cruising. We can so get some chicks with this car!"

"Hell yeah!" the owner pumped his fist in the air, "I was wondering when you'd get around to suggesting it! Let me run up and get my jacket, then we can-"

He was cut off my a distant boom, and a shout of alarm. A shadow was suddenly flying through the air, blocking out the sun. Both men looked up in time to see that the shadow was the form of a person, having been thrown from two city blocks down.

Two seconds later, the huge frame of a blue and silver titanium robot fell from the sky and slammed right into the sandy haired young man's pimped car. The roof was completely smashed in, the engine bottomed out as the hood flew up and off, and every window in the car was shattered. Various internal liquids flowed like small rivers from the cars bowls, and as the robot started to sit up, he put a hand down, crushing the amp in behind the drivers seat.

The robot turned out to be a teenage African American male, who's body was mostly battle armor. Both young men who had been drooling over the car a moment before knew him immediately as Cyborg, one of the Teen Titans that protected the city.

Cyborg muttered in an angry manner as he stood up, "Flippin' Mammoth. Gonna show him what six hundred pounds of titanium butt whumpin' feels like…" he turned and regarded the car, then the two young men behind it, both of whom were staring at him numbly. He waved with a half smile, "Sorry about the car, man." And he dashed off up the street, where they could see the Titans doing battle with the HIVE Five several blocks away.

The sandy haired young man began to cry and his friend just turned and walked back into the apartments behind them.


	2. Another Dark Knight

The Day to Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Opening Notes – Not too much to say about this one. I've done the theme in REMR, but decided it can't be stressed enough. I hate rapists.

**Just Another Dark Knight**

She could feel the terror before she could see the girl at the end of the ally.

Raven floated down to the ground next to the young woman who lay sprawled on the ground, weeping and bleeding. She wasted no time in touching the girls shoulder and helping her to sit up, "Miss, I know it's hard right now, but I'm here to help. My name is Raven, and I'm a Teen Titan."

The girl opened her eyes and nodded, tears streaming down her face.

"Where did he go? The man who attacked you?"

The girl lifted a hand weakly and pointed to the other end of the ally, where it emptied out onto High Street, "He ran when he heard you coming… he… he…"

"I know what he did to you… don't worry, I'm going after him. I'll have someone here to help you in a matter of minutes."

"Thank you…"

"All part of the job, Miss. Sit tight and Starfire will be here momentarily."

The girl nodded as Raven dropped a tracking device next to her and took to the air again, swooping down the ally. As she flew along, she pulled out her communicator and flipped it open, "Star, follow the transmitter I just dropped… our serial rapist just got another victim. He's not far, and I'm in pursuit."

"On my way." Came Starfire's response.

Raven flipped her com shut and blurred around the corner of the ally. She flew high, and looked down at the streets below, searching for anyone fleeing the area…

"There." She muttered as she saw a man running down a different ally, attempting to buckle his pants as he fled. She angled her body down and flew straight for him. As she made it down to the ground and up behind him, she put out both arms and bent them at the elbows. She didn't slow down at all as she plowed into him, double checking him into the nearby brick wall and sending him the ground with a shout of pain.

Raven landed in front of him, her eyes burning red, "You monster…" she growled out, "You sick, sick monster…"

"Oh God… don't hurt me!"

"Did that girl you just violated beg? Did she beg you not to hurt her?"

"I… I…"

"You what?" Raven shouted, taking a step forward. Her soul-self burst out from her cloak, writhing around her and flooding the ally in darkness, "You're life isn't worth taking… but your soul will be delicious…"

"No! Oh God… oh God…!"

"Raven!" a strong voice shouted from behind her, and just as suddenly as her powers had manifested, they vanished. Her eyes faded from red to violet, and she slowly turned around to reguard her team leader.

"I'm sorry." She muttered, "I was… angry."

"It's okay… go ahead and fly back to help Star. The two of you can get the girl to safety." Robin stepped down the ally and stopped next to her, "I'll finish up here."

Raven arched an eyebrow at him, her empathy tingling, "Very well. See you back at the Tower." And she vanished in a cloud of darkness.

As Robin turned to the rapist, the middle aged man crawled forward, "Oh thank you! She was going to kill me… you saved my life!"

"She wouldn't have killed you…" Robin took a step forward, bringing his hands up and cracking his knuckles, "In fact, what she would have done would be considered downright gentle compared to what I'm going to do to you…" The street lights behind Robin threw his entire from into shadow, leaving only his terrifying silhouette to stalk forward slowly.

"No… you have to arrest me… have to turn me in…"

"Yeah," Robin replied in a dark tone, "eventually…"

The rapist's eyes grew wide as Robin's first punch flashed out at him, connecting with a loud smack that echoed into the night.

The man's cries of pain lasted for a considerable amount of time.


	3. Mental Health Day

The Day to Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Standard disclaimers apply.

Opening Notes – This was supposed to be a much longer one-shot, but I just kind of ran out of ideas and steam on it. So I edited it and condensed it a little, bringing it to a close and leaving a few issues unresolved that I was going to close the first time around. So, without further adu…

* * *

**Mental Health Day**

* * *

**-Part One-**

Titans Tower became cold late at night.

The cold didn't usually bother Raven... her average body temperature was actually ten degrees below that of a normal human, giving her a rather icy touch all the time, and rendering her immune to the mild central Californian winters they experienced in Jump City. But the Tower just... _seemed_ colder late at night.

She knew in the back of her head that it was because of the environmental controls that Cyborg had installed years ago, regulating the temperature down to a cool sixty five degrees when the Titans were asleep in their beds, simply to save on energy costs. But with all the Titans asleep, the dark hallways became lonely, and the cooler temperature added a certain air of desperation to the Tower that made the blue haired sorceress shiver.

She floated along the first of the residential levels, preparing herself for her task the next day. At least that's what she told herself. In actuality, floating like a shadow down the hallways of Titans Tower and eavesdropping on her friends dreams had nothing to do with the psychiatric evaluations she would be administering the following morning.

It was a way to calm her nerves. A habit she had formed in the early days of the team. When she couldn't sleep, she would float about and bury herself in her friends subconscious thoughts, feeling a closeness to them she couldn't feel in their waking hours. It was comforting to her, and one of the few guilty pleasures she allowed herself.

The evaluations were a twice yearly event, organized by Robin shortly after the Titans got together. She had been given the task (as the resident empath) to interview each Titan, discuss their thoughts and feelings with them, and rate them as fit or unfit for duty. So far, each of them had passed every time, despite the horrors and dangers they had faced since they were all fourteen years old.

Her job had expanded as the world wide Titans expanded, and now, four years later, she had a rotating schedule of interviews all year round. No more than two in any given month, but it was enough to finally convince Robin to give her an office to work out of for it. The spacious area with her desk, personal computer (locked tight with several passwords and fail safes should anyone try to hack it) and shelves of psychiatric texts was housed on the eighth floor. All four original Titans were reviewed on the same day, and it was an all day event.

Now, as the clock on the wall turned it's hands to 1:34 in the morning, Raven came upon the first room on this level, the one she slept on. The "female domain" as Starfire called it. When Terra had been with them, the three of them had held firm sway over this level of the Tower, forbidding the boys from entering it without express permission. Not that they had listened to that mandate, but they had all been just over fifteen then, so it wasn't too big a deal to anyone.

Starfire was the only other Titan on the sixth floor with her now, however. Terra was gone, and the two remaining girls occupied the large, lonely space themselves, reminded every day of their old friend. It saddened Raven, but she pushed the emotions aside and concentrated on Starfire's mind through the alien girls door.

Starfire dreamed of many things... the range was surprisingly varied and deep for a girl who went though her days smiling every second, and trying to help everyone she came across. She dreamed of her home, of her friends (Robin especially), and of her many adventures on Earth.

The dreams that concerned Raven the most, however, were the ones Starfire had of her time spent as a slave, when she was known as Koriand'r, traded for her planet's freedom from the Citadel. Before the Gordainans had lost her during transport, she had spent a year and a half on a strange world, populated by more humanoid creatures than the giant lizard people who had chased her to Earth.

There, she had suffered many beatings, harsh words, and humiliations. She was a princess, and had not ever been forced to do hard labor or cleaning chores before she had been sold into slavery. She was punished severely when she failed to live up to expectations, and beaten nearly to the point of death on several occasions.

Perhaps the worst memories she dreamt about were the times she had been used for little more than a masturbation tool, as her masters had taken her roughly, and by force, sapping her alien strength with a power restraining collar, and raping her until she bled. Starfire never told anyone of those times, and blocked them from her mind as much as she could.

Raven had been unprepared for the visions of her cheerful, exuberant friend suffering such sick and horrendous acts, and had been repelled from her mind the first time she had seen them. The next time, she was ready though, and had allowed herself to feel as Starfire felt, and experience the situation from her friends perspective.

Needless to say, it had given her a great deal more respect for Starfire. Going through every day with a wonderful, beautiful outlook on life, always looking for the good in all things, never daunted by the evil that assailed her every day... after what she had suffered, it was nothing short of a miracle that Starfire had been able to hang on to her Tamaranien ways.

Raven was therefore happy to note that this night, Starfire was dreaming of Robin again. She was in love with him, and he with her, and both of them still too boneheaded to admit it and start dating. This nights dream featured a romantic get away to some gorgeous planet or another, with violet surf washing up on white sand beaches, and a slightly purple tinted sky lit by a bright orange sun. The two lovers lay entwined with one another, whispering sweet nothings and gazing longingly into one another's eyes...

Raven pulled back and smiled. Starfire was okay for now, and her evaluation would be just as it was every other year.

Moving on, Raven melted into the shadows and emerged near Cyborg's room on the seventh floor. Victor Stone sometimes dreamt in one's and zero's, but his human mind came through most of the time. He had possibly the most normal dreams of any of the Titans, and considering his past, that was saying something.

An accident at his father's lab when he was younger had given Cyborg his robotic body, and nightmares from that experience haunted him still. Mostly though, he dreamed of times when he was a star athlete, before his accident, or of the good times he had with the Titans. His dreams were surreal, taking elements from throughout his day and weaving them into a semblance of a story for his mind to follow. Sometimes they were nonsensical, other times they made too much sense.

This night, he was dreaming of swimming laps in a lake of pudding, while Beast Boy danced with Starfire on a banana floating next to him.

Raven snorted with amusement, but let her mirth fade as she stepped down the hall further and stopped at Beast Boy's door.

Garfield Logan hadn't had an easy childhood either. Infected with the deadly Sakutia virus as a young child, he had been saved by his parents, who were both brilliant geneticists. They had died some months later in a boating accident, and he had gone to live with Rita Farr of the Doom Patrol. Eventually, he'd left them and joined the Titans, and the rest was history.

Beast Boy's bad dreams were about losing his friends, and about Terra. He still hurt over her, especially since he'd found her, her memory wiped and living in ignorance of what she had once been. It was sad, but he had moved past it, and the occasional dream was nothing to be concerned over.

Mostly, Beast Boy had an over abundance of sex dreams. He never really showed it in his waking hours, and maybe that was _why_ he dreamed about it so much, but he really was one horny little bastard. Sometimes his dreams featured busty blonde fantasy women, and other times it was some famous actress or model, but most of the time... most of the time, it was either Starfire or herself.

Raven winced as she shook her head. She wasn't fooling herself at all. Most of the time it was _her_ he dreamed about. Not Terra, not Starfire, but Raven. At first she had been disgusted that he dreamed of her doing things she would never do in the real world, but after a year or two, she had finally accepted it and was now quite flattered that even though he held no real romantic feelings for her, he found her to be attractive enough to out rank even Star in his sexual fantasy's.

Once, she had thrown caution to the wind and immersed herself in his dreams as she had with Starfire's, but in his dreams she had taken the place of herself. She had woken out of her mediation in the hallway outside his room, weak in the knees, and feeling moist and sticky between her legs, having had such a strong experience that even her physical body had been shaken by an orgasm.

Needless to say, she'd never done it again.

Tonight, his dreams were rather tame, staring herself and Starfire in a three-way of not so epic proportions. He obviously hadn't been browsing his internet porn collection before going to sleep this time.

Of course, even in Beast Boy's mild dreams she learned something new every time. With a light blush, she allowed a light smile. She'd never considered that she and Starfire would be able to do _that_ while floating in mid-air.

The last room on her rounds was Robin's. As she approached his door, she sighed, not really feeling surprised that he wasn't even asleep. He was irritated, which meant he was most likely working on a case he was having a hard time solving.

When he was sleeping, Robin didn't dream too often. When he did, it was of the horrors he'd seen in Gotham with the Batman, of his parents death, or of Starfire and his friends. He too had sex dreams, and she herself did star in them sometimes, but it was all natural teen-age boy stuff. Not nearly to the extent Beast Boy's mind took it.

Now however, Raven raised a hand and knocked soundly on the door, putting on her best scolding scowl. As the portal opened, she pulled up her hood.

"Yes?" Robin looked irked at having been disturbed.

"It's half past one in the morning, Robin. You need sleep." She tried to sound as authoritative as she could.

"I'm fine." He didn't even flinch at her tone.

They locked eyes and stared for a moment, then Raven sighed, "There's no point in trying to argue with you..." Lowering her hood, she frowned in a concerned manner, "You need sleep, Robin. As amazing as you are, you're human, and your body needs rest."

"I said I'm fine. Now if there's nothing else-"

"Your six month evaluation is tomorrow, you know." Reasoning with him never worked. She didn't know why she even tried.

"Yes, Raven, I'm aware. I'm nearing a breakthrough on the Rancid case though, so-"

"Richard." she narrowed her eyes at him. If there was one way to get him to listen to her...

"Don't call me that out here!" he hissed at her, shooting a glance down the hallway at Beast Boy's door, as if he expected the green skinned changeling to jump out and say "Ah ha!"

"Go to bed." Raven poked him in the chest, "The Rancid case isn't going anywhere, and he's gone to ground anyway. The trails been cold for weeks."

"But-"

"No buts, Robin." She smiled lightly, then leaned up and took his head in her hands. Pulling his face down to her, she kissed him lightly on the forehead in a maternal manner, "Go to sleep, and get some rest. Your mind is exhausted."

He sighed but smiled down at her anyway, "Okay... no need to pull the 'mother' trick on me..."

"You need to be mothered sometimes. You're such a boy." she shook her head as she floated back away from him, "Bed."

"I'm going. See you in the morning, Rae."

"Yeah. See you." and she watched his door shut.

As she stood outside his door and made sure he was going to bed for several minutes, she contemplated her relationship with the Boy Wonder. He was a close friend, and they shared a mild mind link, but she didn't really harbor any romantic feelings for him. Not that should could even if she wanted to, but that was beside the point.

Robin was an older brother, and a younger brother all at the same time. He was complicated, mysterious, and only she knew his secrets. Of all the Titans, only she knew who he was under the mask.

Well, her and Speedy, but the two of them went way back, and their mentors were friends as well, so it was only natural.

Once she was sure he was dozing off, Raven opened a portal and returned to her own room. She had a busy day tomorrow, and she wanted to be rested enough to handle all she knew would be coming her way.

* * *

**-Part Two-**

Raven stepped into her office and flipped the light on. She paused in the doorway and checked around, making sure everything was still as she had left it last time she'd been in. Satisfied that no one had accessed her hardcopy files, or hacked her computer, she walked in and swept off her cloak.

She tossed it aside and it fluttered down to land perfectly on the oak coat rack in the corner. She padded across the plush red carpet and settled behind her large oak desk. The monitor for her computer sat off to one side, facing her, and several files were strewn across the open expanse in front of her. She reached behind herself without looking and used her powers to pull a large book off the wall behind her that doubled as a bookcase.

Flipping open the large leather bound volume, she opened the drawer in front of her and pulled out an expensive looking pen. She made a few notes, jotting down the names and dates of the Titans to be reviewed this day.

Setting the book aside, she opened another drawer and pulled out a yellow legal pad. Raven preferred to take all her notes by hand, then transfer them to her computer later. It made for a more personal experience, and the other members of her team appreciated it.

Pulling out and flipping open her T-Comp, she put out a call, "Raven to Beast Boy."

_"Hey Rae."_

"Don't call me that."

_"Hey Raven."_

"Better. It's time. You're first this year."

_"Aw, man! I'm right in the middle of this level!"_

"Now, Beast Boy."

He swallowed hard, _"Okay! I'll be right up!"_

Raven closed her communicator and sat it aside. Rubbing her temples, she sighed. Sitting up straight, she decided she'd better clear her mind before Beast Boy arrived.

Closing her eyes, she chanted out, "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos…"

* * *

Beast Boy settled comfortably into the squishy leather chair across from Raven at the desk. He smirked a little, "I like the no-cloak look."

"It's too stuffy in here." Raven replied, and moved so that she was sitting back from the desk a little ways, and the notepad was propped on her crossed legs. It was so Beast Boy couldn't see her notes, but she could sense that he appreciated the view of her lean calves. Rolling her eyes, she began her interview.

"Formalities out of the way, then." Raven made a few notes, "Have you started using any illegal substances since your last evaluation?"

"Nope."

"Have you started drinking alcohol of any kind?"

"Nope."

"Have you seen any other qualified doctors and received any kind of medication?"

"Nope."

Raven nodded. After the first few evaluations, Beast Boy had figured out that if he didn't answer the first few questions with simple yes or no answers, Raven would grill him about it for hours. She liked him to be succinct on those critical matters.

"Very good." She continued, "Let's chat. How've you been?"

It was always a little odd to Beast Boy to see Raven look at him like she cared what he was thinking about, and like she was interested in his life, but he knew this was the only place it really showed. She always cared, but here she could show that side of herself to him.

"I'm doing fine. Nothing really new and exciting here."

"Then lets talk about your progress from the last time…" she flipped open his file and checked a few things, "Tell me about how you're doing with Robin."

"We're getting along better, I think. I mean, I know he's the leader and all, but he still comes off as just plain bossy some times."

"It's part of your animal instincts kicking in. You have a natural desire to be the Alpha Male in the pack." Raven made a note on her pad, "How've you been dealing with it? Did you use any of my suggestions?"

"Yeah, actually I did." Beast Boy blushed a little, "I tried to talk it out with him."

"How'd that go?"

"He was really resistant at first, but when he figured out that I wasn't questioning his leadership, and just trying to get him to talk to me, he relaxed and we were able to chat."

"What did you talk about?"

"Some guy stuff… you know, girls and video games and stuff. We talked a little about him being less dramatic about everything, and controlling his temper a little better. He suggested that I work on getting more serious about my duties on missions and stuff too."

"I've noticed that you've been a little bit more focused lately. You're trying harder."

"Yeah." Beast Boy grinned.

Raven check another few notes from the case file, "How's your sex life?"

Beast Boy gagged, "Not this again…"

"Garfield…" Raven's voice had a low warning tone to it.

"Fine, fine…" he sighed and slumped down, "I can't get a date to save my life, and I'm still having the dreams…"

"Trust me, I know." Raven rolled her eyes, "It's all I can do to block them out some nights."

"I only remember a little of them… um… are you…"

"Still making almost nightly appearance in you fantasies? Yes, I am." Raven made a few more notes and looked up at him. Beast Boy was blushing so hard it contrasted with his green skin tone, making him look almost brown. "Calm down, Gar. I'm flattered, really."

"Really?" he spoke meekly.

"Really. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't know half as much as I do about different sexual positions and the proper way to give a blow job."

Beast Boy sank into his seat and buried his face in his hands, "God…"

Raven managed to not grin at his discomfort, "Let's talk about your fear of in-action."

After he composed himself, Beast Boy sat up a little, "I'm getting better, I think. I'm stopping to analyze things before I go jumping into a fight, and I feel less impulsive than I used to be. I still don't always like to wait when Robin tells us to, but I think the getting more focused thing is helping with that."

"Excellent. Only one thing left then." Raven always saved it for the last part of the interview because it was the touchiest subject for him.

Beast Boy cut her off before she could even ask any questions. Looking away from her he shook his head, "I haven't tried to contact Terra, and I haven't been to her room at all in the past six months."

"Okay…" Raven made another note, then looked back up at him, "You still think about her a lot… I know you're trying, Garfield. What is it that's keeping you from getting over her?"

"Slade." He spit the word.

"Your encounter with him at the fun park." Raven clarified, and he nodded, "What upsets you about it so much?"

"The bastard said to leave her alone because… because she'd be happier without me. What does he know? He's just a freak that-"

"Garfield." Raven sent soothing waves of empathy his way, "Calm yourself."

Beast Boy settled down and stared at his feet, "I know I should let her go, Rae… I just… she's right out there," he made a motion with his hand to indicate Jump City as a whole, "and I can't go to her."

Raven nodded, "I know. I wish sometimes that I could…" she trailed off as well, and they sat in silence for a moment, "I know it's not easy, Garfield, but try to be happy for her."

He just nodded miserably.

"And get laid for crying out loud." Raven scowled at him.

Beast Boy chuckled, and waggled his eyebrows at her, "Are you willing to help?"

"Are you willing to practice first, so I'm not disappointed in your lack of skill?"

He outright laughed at that, then stood up, "I'm going to hold you to that… once I've got some practice in, you and I are gonna go at it."

"Somehow, I doubt that will ever come to pass." Raven waved a hand, dismissing him, "We're done. Go find Starfire and send her here."

"Will do. And thanks, Raven."

"Hey, it's part of the job." Raven actually gave him a small smile, and he returned it before leaving.

* * *

Starfire settled herself prettily before her friend and smiled, "How was your interview with Garfield?" she queried.

"Much like it is every time." Raven replied, "Are you ready?"

"I believe so."

"Very well. The basics then. Have you started using any illegal substances since your last evaluation?"

"I have not."

"Have you started drinking alcohol of any kind?"

"Negative."

"Have you seen any other qualified doctors and received any kind of medication?"

"As there are no doctors on Earth qualified to diagnose me with anything, and I have not been off-planet recently, no."

"Good." Raven made a note, "I'd like you to tell me a little about how your powers are developing. You seem to be able to lift more than before."

"Yes. As I grow older, my strength should increase to about twice what it is now. I shall soon be stronger than even Victor."

"And the physical changes?" Raven arched an eyebrow.

Starfire blushed lightly, and crossed her arms over her chest. The arms themselves showed high muscle definition, and she squirmed in her seat, "My body will soon be… different from most Earth females…"

"You may not look like a skinny waif of a super modal, Kori, but you'll still be one of the most beautiful girls on the planet."

"That is very nice of you to say. I would attribute most of that attractiveness to my large grebnacks however… most Tameranian woman are of my size, but here on Earth there is such a verity."

"You're face is very pretty, Kori. And whether you look like a body builder or not, your body still makes men trip over themselves."

"I think you are quite lovely as well, Raven."

"We're not talking about me." Raven shook her head, "Please don't tell me you're developing body issues?"

"I do not think so. It is simply an adjustment period for me."

"Good. You have nothing to be worried about, trust me."

"I always do."

"Now… your dreams of late have been moving away from your past. While this is a good sign, I'm wondering why."

"I have been thinking little of my past lately. It was… difficult, to be sure, but…" she blushed, "I have been thinking more of the future lately."

"You mean a future with a certain boy named Robin."

Star blushed even deeper, "I know it sounds quite foolish… I do not even know his true name… but Robin and I are… such good friends…"

"Have you confronted him with your feelings?"

"I have not… the opportunity has not presented its self."

"Don't wait forever, Kori. That's the best advice I can give you on that subject."

"Thank you."  
"Is there anything new you want to talk about?"

"I cannot think of anything… do you sense anything that you think we should talk about?"

"Other than your recently developed and quite unhealthy obsession with minesweeper? No."

"But I love Minesweeper!"

"I know, I know…"

"Please! Do not make me desist in my sweeping for mines!"

"Very well. I always enjoy doing your evaluation… quick and easy." As Star began to giggle, Raven waved her away, "Send Cyborg up next, please."

* * *

"How ya' doin' toady, Rae?" Cy grinned at her.

"Don't call me Rae."

"Whatever."

"Basics out of the way first. Have you started using any illegal substances since our last interview?"

"Nope."

"Have you starting drinking alcohol?"

"Nope."

"Have you seen any other qualified doctors for treatment or started taking any medication?"

Cy frowned, "Yes."

Raven arched an eyebrow, "Really? Care to explain?"

"I've been going to Star Labs every few weeks for the past three months. They do hardware updates, scan me for software abnormalities, and I… talk to one of the doctors there about… stuff."

"What's the name of this doctor?" Raven turned to her computer.

"Sarah Charles."

Raven was silent as she typed a few things into his profile, then turned back to him, "What do you talk to her about?"

"Stuff… you know… how I feel about my body, how I feel about having to live like I do."

Raven stared at him for a moment, then asked softly, "Do you talk about your father with her?"

Cy looked away, "Sometimes. She's not a shrink or anything… she's an engineer, actually, but she… gets it, you know?"

"Not at all. Can you explain?"

Cy sighed, "Her father… wasn't the nicest guy either. He drank himself to death a few years ago, but she still has issues with it. And she understands what I mean when I tell her my fifteenth motor servo in my right arm is operating at only seventy percent capacity."

"Sounds like you go to see her for more than just discussing parent issues." Raven sat back and jotted a few notes on her pad.

"Do you mean that you think it sounds like that, or that I actually feel that?"

"Only you can tell what you're really feeling Victor."

"Oh, come on, Raven! I've been wondering for a month if I like this girl or not!"

"How old is she?"

"Twenty-two."

"Kind of young for a doctor, isn't she?"

"She's brilliant. And funny, and nice and-"

"Is she pretty?" Raven leaned forward with a smile.

Cy blinked at her then looked away with a smile of his own, "Yeah. Real pretty."

"Then I'll let you draw your conclusion from there."

"You're annoying."

"I do my best. How are you dealing with your anger?"

A little thrown by the sudden change in the subject, Cy fought to regain his balance, "Uh… you know… better?"

"Are you asking me or telling me?"

"Telling you." Cy shook his head, "We're clicking more as a team now, have you noticed? Everyone knows what to do, no one is throwing around ego anymore… even Robin has chilled out."

"I have noticed, yes. Why do you think that is?" Raven scribbled in the margin of her notepad. Cyborg always made her want to doodle.

"Probably because we're getting older. Working more like adults than hot headed teenagers."

"I think you might be right." Raven nodded, "Anything else you want to talk about?"

"Just one thing. I had this dream last night where I was swimming in a lake of-"

"Tell it to Sarah." Raven smiled in an evil kind of way, "And send Robin up when you get back down there."

* * *

The door to Raven's office swooshed open and Robin stalked in, bringing a whole mess of negative energy with him. Raven almost winced at the anger and frustration he was emanating.

She pressed ahead anyway, "I sent for you almost two hours ago."

"I was busy."

"Don't be short with me."

"Can we get on with this, Raven? I don't have all day."

Raven frowned, then stood up. Walking around the desk, she stepped up to the door to her office and engaged the electronic lock. Moving to the corner, she tapped a few buttons on the wall and disengaged all the security and recording devices in the room. Walking back to her desk, she sat on the front of it, right next to Robin.

"Take off the mask." She ordered.

Robin glared over at her for a moment, then sighed and slumped down. Reaching up, he peeled off his mask and sat it aside. As he turned his blue eyed gaze back to her, Raven reached out and held his chin in her hand.

"I am not your enemy, Richard. You don't have to fight me."

He sighed again and nodded, "I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it." Raven stood once again and walked around behind her desk. Resuming her seat, she picked up her legal pad and arched an eyebrow at him, "Have you started using any illegal substances in the past six months?"

"No."

"Have you started drinking alcohol of any kind?"

"No."

"Have you been to see any other qualified doctors or started taking any kind of medication?"

"No."

"Good… now do you want to tell me what has you so angry?"

"Just… working a case."

"A Slade case?"

"No!" Robin almost laughed, "It's actually a normal crime… serial rapist."

"Ah. I read over that one yesterday."

"I just makes me sick, and it bothers me that we don't have the time to be out there catching the bastard because we have to be constantly saving the world and stuff."

"Priorities, Richard."

"I know, I know. I just wish we could do more for the city, is all."

"Does this mean you're finally putting down roots? Adopting a city of your own?"

"Yeah… wouldn't Batman be proud."

"Don't scowl so much, you're face will stick like that."

"Yeah, you're a riot." Robin rolled his eyes, but smiled a little anyway, "I don't know, Raven… Jump just feels like home now. We've been here for years after all, and maybe it's time to act more like the city's defenders and less like it's just a place for us to hang out while we wait for the next big would-be-world-crusher."

"As the leader of the Titans, that's up to you. We do have a large enough network of team members out there to support most of the globe trotting adventures we go on."

"I know… but as you've noted before, I'm a control freak."

"Yes. You don't like to let things go. The job won't be done right unless you're there to do it."

"Exactly… I have to learn to trust in the other Titans more."

"I'll say. Have you spoken to Batman in the last six months?"

"No."

"So it's been almost two years now. Are you ever going to speak to him again?"

"Maybe… I don't know. We'll see."

"That's the exact same thing you said last time I asked you about it. You should really call him, Richard."

"I'll think about it."

"See that you do. Now what's up with you and Kori?"

"Oh, you just look sooo excited to hear about this!" Robin leaned forward, "Should I give you all the juicy details, or do you want the abridged version?"

"Oh, by all means, give me the juicy details." Raven smiled back at him, and Robin spluttered for a moment before he regain his mental footing.

"Fine! I… uh… don't know."

"Right." Raven rolled her eyes.

"Okay, okay… we, uh… kissed."

Raven's eyebrows shot up, "She failed to mention that. When was this?"

"Not long ago. A few weeks."

"And have you done anything since then?"

"I've been too freaked out by it. I mean, I'm like… wow. I'm in love with her, Raven. I love her… so much."

"I know. Trust me." Raven rolled her eyes.

"Right." Robin looked away, and his eyes roamed the room, "I just don't know how to proceed here."

"You mean you don't know how to proceed without making it look like you're giving her preferential treatment over the rest of us."

"And I don't know what to do about my secret identity, or making time for her, or-"

"Richard, none of us will fault you for not wanting to put Kori through the training hell you put the rest of us through. You already give her less work."

"I do not!"

"You do too. Don't argue with me."

"Fine."

"As for your identity, I think you should tell her. Hell, I think you should tell the rest of the team, but you've always been resistant to that idea."

He frowned, "You know why."

"And I still say they can keep the secret. We've all grown up, Richard. Maybe it's time to treat us like we have." He was silent for a moment, so she pressed on, "As for time, all you have to do is call in a reserve member if you think we need some more help while you're on a date or a vacation, or just trust the rest of us to pick up the slack." She shrugged, "It's really not that complicated."

"But… I'm the leader!"

"We've managed without you in the past. We can do it again. You're only a com call away, Richard."

He grumbled for a second, then sighed and nodded, "Okay… I'll experiment. Kori and I will go out sometime in the next week… baby steps, you know?"

"I know. Don't think I wont still push you though."

"That's fine. I need to be pushed sometimes."

"Tell me about it." Raven rolled her eyes, "You can go. I have to prepare for my own evaluation tonight." She looked him directly in the eye, "Do you want me to tell Bruce anything for you?"

Robin looked back with steel, "I can't think of anything. Let me work that situation out on my own, Raven."

"Fine." She waved a hand, "Get out of here. I have to enter my notes into the computer before I go meditate."

* * *

**-Part 3-**

Raven opened her eyes as she sensed the presence on the rooftop with her. She'd been sitting on top of the building in the commercial district for over an hour, meditating and waiting for the man who would be evaluating her.

"You're late." She stated. She didn't expect a reply, so she wasn't surprised when she didn't get one. Standing up, she turned around and faced the only completely human man in the would who scared the daylights out of her.

The Batman stood off to one side, his cape billowing in the night wind. The pale moonlight did little to bring him out of shadow, and his emotionless gaze pinned her and filled her soul with a sense of foreboding.

"Are we going to start?" she asked in a clipped tone, not in the mood for him to be silent and creepy all night.

"Very well." His voice was a low rumble, the kind of sound that made criminals in Gotham piss themselves. He stepped forward and glared down at her. "Have you started using any drugs, alcohol, or illegal substances?"

"No."

"Have you been to any qualified doctors?"

"No."

He wasted no time with being pleasant, "Have your powers been acting normally?"

"Yes."

"You've suffered no traumas or mental stresses that have caused any psychotic behavior to manifest?"

"No."

"Are you still meditating every day?"

"Sometimes two or three times."

"Are you getting along well with all the other Titans?"

"Yes. Even the new ones."

"Good." He paused, "How's Dick?"

Raven arched an eyebrow, "Frustrated. Sometimes angry. But happy, mostly."

Batman turned away, "That's… good to hear."

Raven spoke quietly to his back, "He misses you, you know."

"I know. I miss him sometimes too."

"I know."

"Of course you do."

Silence fell over them for several minutes, then Raven floated up off the rooftop. "I'd like to get back to the Tower. It's cold out here."

"Very well… tell Dick to call me some time."

"You're getting sentimental in your old age, Bruce." A ghost of a smile flittered about Raven's lips, "Thank you for your time."

He just stared at her a moment longer, so she nodded to him and flew off into the night.

A few minutes after she had left, Batman turned to a spot to his right, "Well?"

The Martian Manhunter became visible a moment later and stood with his arms crossed over his chest. He replied in his usual monotone, "She seems to be doing better, honestly. I couldn't sense any anger or resentment in her as I have in the past."

"She's growing up. Hormones are leveling out."

"Or maybe she's just learned to accept her team as her family."

"You're not usually such an optimist, J'onn."

"And you don't usually enquire after Robin so much."

Batman turned a glare on him, "If you so much as telepathically mutter anything about that to Clark or Diana, I swear I'll set your cape on fire."

The Manhunter smiled faintly, "I will keep that in mind, Batman."

* * *

When Raven got back to the Tower, she found the team all assembled in the living room, watching some movie or another. She floated by them on her way to the kitchen and waved.

They all waved back and Beast Boy muttered, "Hey." They all seemed rather transfixed on the huge screen. Raven shook her head and went about heating water for some tea to warm herself up.

As she stood before the stove, waiting for the water to boil, she felt a presence enter the kitchen behind her. She looked over her shoulder at Robin, "Yes?"

He frowned at her, "How was it?"

"Fine."

"Was he a jerk?"

"Almost as big a jerk as you were earlier."

He frowned, "Look, I said I was sorry-"

"Calm down." She cut him off with a small smile, "I'm just winding you up."

Robin paused, then shook his head with a smile, "I'm still not used to you and humor."

"Me either."

"Heh… did he do it again?"

"Yes. Martian Manhunter was there the whole time, probing my mind. I didn't let him see too much."

"Good."

"Batman doesn't trust me for a reason, Robin. I could potentially be one of the most dangerous people on the planet if I went rouge."

"It still doesn't give him the right to secretly invade your thoughts."

"No, it doesn't." Raven shook her head, "He asked about you."

"And what did you say?"

"I told him you're doing fine." Raven blinked, "He asked me to tell you to call him sometime… he's lonely without you back in Gotham."

"The Batman doesn't get lonely." Robin snorted, "He has Batgirl with him."

"Didn't she go to collage?"

"She goes to Gotham University though." He waved a hand, "She's there."

"Right." Raven turned back to her boiling water and began to steep her tea. After a moment, she sighed and turned around again, "Robin, I'm fine… go back to your movie and hold Kori's hand or something."

Robin grinned a little and blushed lightly. He nodded and turned back to the living room, walking off a moment later. Raven sighed and returned to her tea. As she worked, she sighed. Another year's evaluations of her closest friends was done. They'd all passed with flying colors once again, and she was confident that the next years interviews would go even better as they all grew up and became stronger in mind and body.

What troubled her though was what she had discovered when she was entering her notes into her computer. She'd checked the calendar on her desk for a reference point, and had noticed something that made her want to drown in her tea right then. Somehow she'd messed up her scheduling and had three more interviews just the next week. Normally that wouldn't have been a big deal, but these interviews were… difficult, to say the least.

She sighed once again, removing her tea from the burner and searching the cupboards for a clean mug. She'd have to meditate every second of every day to be prepared for doing evaluations for Speedy, Jinx and Gnark all in the same day…

* * *

Closing Notes - Some of these little one shots will be longer like this one, but most will be shorter. Thanks for reading, and as always, reviews are welcome. 


	4. Football

The Day to Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Opening Notes – Because it's Sunday. And because I wanted to post a little bit of the Titans having fun as normal teenagers for once. Well, as normal as they can be, anyway.

Standard disclaimers apply.

* * *

**Football**

* * *

The park rumbled with the sound of a thousand stampeding bovines. 

Which wasn't odd, considering Cyborg was running in an eighty yard touchdown, closely followed by the left side tackle of the opposing team, Beast Boy in full Texas Long Horn form.

"You think you can catch me, but you can't catch me!" Cyborg cackled as he charged down the makeshift field.

Beast Boy snorted and finally caught up to him, nudging him forward a little and overbalancing him right at the ten yard line. As the titanium Titan pitched forward with a shout, a red blur passed in front of him. Standing a few feet away from where he plowed into the ground and dug up a huge trench, Kid Flash grinned.

"Interception: Kid Flash." He grinned, and blurred down the field in less than half a second. He was almost to the opposing end zone when he suddenly tripped and tumbled almost a hundred feet, the ball he was holding flying up into the air. Standing where he had tripped were Mas y Menos, grinning and reaching up with their four hands to catch the ball as it fell.

As soon as the pigskin was in their possession, a shadow fell over them. Looking up, they saw Wildebeast descending from a flying tackle with a bovine battle cry. Shouting in alarm, they quickly hurled the ball at the first team mate they could see.

As four hundred pounds of bipedal bull crashed into the twin speedsters, Starfire caught the ball. She giggled as she quickly spun around and flew at a rapid pace back down the field, attempting to make the touchdown Cyborg had started.

Halfway there she shrieked and pulled up short as Bumble Bee grew from miniature size to full size in a matter of seconds. The leader of Titans East flew in and plowed into Starfire's midsection, knocking her back and causing the ball to fly up in the air.

Even as the two girls tumbled away, Speedy came dashing out of no where and jumped up, fingers reaching for the fumbled football. Just as he was about to grab it, Robin dashed up behind him and literally climbed up his friends back, using his shoulders as a vaulting point to jump up and grab the ball from him.

The Boy Wonder hit the ground running and dodged first Hotspot, then Aqualad as they attempted to tackle him. He was gaining good ground, and it seemed as if he would finally make the touchdown for Cyborg when three things happened.

Jinx, Kole and Gnarrk all jumped in from all around him and grabbed hold of any part of the Titans West leader they could. Kole wrapped her arms about his neck, Gnarrk caught his cape, and Jinx wrapped herself around his middle.

Robin strained against all three of them, staggering forward another four steps before Gnarrk finally shoved into him, pitching all four Titans forward and to the ground in a head. Robin stuck the ball out at the last second, planting it firmly on the ground ahead of his prone position.

"Ummph!" Jinx squirmed underneath him, "Robin! You're crushing my boobs!"

"What boobs?" Robin rolled his eyes, "Wait for the call!"

"Gnarrk!"

"Shut up, Gnarrk." Jinx muttered.

"Don't' talk to him that way!" Kole pouted.

"Or what, you'll turn into a statue and be perfectly still until I die from boredom?"

"Will you two stop it?" Robin tried to shift a little to relieve the pressure on Jinx, "Jinx, aren't you supposed to be on my team anyway?"

"I defected to try and stop your rampant ego."

"Gnarrk!"

Robin, Jinx and Kole all shouted, "Shut up, Gnarrk!"

"Gnarrk…" the caveman sighed and shook his head.

Robin had had enough. He shouted up at the sky, "Hey, Ref! We need a call!"

A moment later, Raven (wearing a black and white striped cloak and leotard) swooped down and landed next to the jumbled of Titans. She inspected the position of the ball, then the two trees that marked the edges of the end zone. Nodding she stepped back and held up two hands, "Touchdown." She stated dryly.

Cyborg, Starfire, Mas y Menos and Robin all cheered, while the rest of the Titans groaned.

* * *

Closing Notes - I keep forgetting to point out that I've linked my Fiction Press account to my FF account profile page. Check it out if you want to see some of my original fiction and poetry. 


	5. First Time

The Day To Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Opening Notes – Okay… I'll say up front that if you have a weak stomach, you should skip this one. It's about as graphic as I get, violence and gore wise. And after the army of zombies in Jump City Cantata, that's saying something. I've always been obsessed with the non-super baddie cases that the Titans work when their not stopping Slade from taking over or the HIVE from destroying and stealing stuff. This is a story about a monster. The title makes sense by the end.

Standard disclaimers apply.

* * *

**First Time**

* * *

Beast Boy charged down the hallway, leaving Robin behind to deal with the last thug on his own. Raven had said the kidnapped girl was in the last room at the end of the hall, and getting to her was the priority. Besides, Robin could handle one unskilled fighter by himself.

As he reached the door, Beast Boy's animal instincts kicked in, and his brain kicked into overdrive to process all the information his sensitive senses were feeding him. The world seemed to move in slow motion all of a sudden as he discerned the sound of a low voice chuckling madly, sounds of something dripping, and the coppery sent of blood.

Slamming his shoulder into the door, Beast Boy crashed into the room. The pain from the blow brought the world back up to speed, and the green teen shouted something that he wouldn't be able to remember he shouted later. The only thing he'd be able to recall about being in the room was reaching out and grabbing the man with the mouth covered in blood and fingers slippery with entrails, and hurling him though the window. He'd find out later that Starfire saved the man from the seven story fall.

Robin found Beast Boy kneeling on the floor of the room, desperately shoving pink and red rolls of raw flesh back into the corpse on the floor, muttering to himself, "Be alive, get them back in… gotta get them back in so you can be alive… not happening… not happening…"

"Beast Boy…" the Boy Wonder grabbed his friend and dragged him back away from the nine year old girl's body, "Come on, BB… snap out of it man!" Robin hauled him back out into the hallway and dumped him on the ground. Bringing back a hand he full out slapped Beast Boy across the face, "Garfield! Look at me!"

Beast Boy looked up, tears staining his face, "My God… Robin… how could someone… I mean, this case was supposed to be a simple kidnapping… how could any person… any man…"

"That guy wasn't a man, Gar. Look at me!" Robin ordered as Beast Boy's eyes started to trail back to the dark room behind his leader, "Look at my eyes." Robin reached up and peeled off his mask, revealing hard blue orbs that stared with intensity, "It wasn't your fault, Gar. It wasn't."

"Robin…" Beast Boy suddenly wretched and keeled over to one side. His hands left blotchy red stains on the hardwood floor from the blood covering them as he braced himself, retched one more time, and threw up all over the hallway. He coughed a few times and began to sob.

Robin slowly put his mask back on then kneeled down. Taking one of Beast Boy's arms, he helped him to his feet, "Come on, Beast Boy. Let's get you out of here." As they moved to leave the building, Raven floated up the steps. Robin glanced at her as he almost carried Beast Boy past, "There's a 10-54d at the end of the hall. DB confirmed."

Raven nodded and pulled out her com to call in the police and coroner. Beast Boy continued to cry softly as Robin helped him down the steps, "It's okay, BB… I know it's hard, but you're going to be fine. This is the hard part of the job… we'll work through it together."

The next day, Beast Boy would request to inform the girl's parents of her death.


	6. Small Victories

The Day to Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Opening Notes – Who says that the Titans only have to fight crime and oppression out on the mean streets? Sometimes, it's the little things you do that make the most difference.

Standard disclaimers apply.

* * *

**Small Victories**

* * *

"Hey guys! Look who we have here! It's Charlie!"

Charlie, a slight young man wearing a black t-shirt and baggy jeans, groaned. He sat at a table in a coffee shop three blocks from West Jump City High, typing away at his laptop shortly after school had let out for the day.

Usually he was okay here, but the past few days, John Hurm and his band of five or six death rock buddies had been showing up and picking on him like they did all day in school. Charlie wanted to complain to the shops owner, but he was afraid John and his friends would beat him up if he got them kicked out.

So it was with a defeated sigh that Charlie looked up and shoved his glasses up further on his nose to keep them from sliding down, "Hi John."

"What're ya doin' there, Charlie?" John grinned down at him from where he stood far too close for the other young man's comfort.

"I'm writing a program."

"What for?"

"A website. I develop as a side job."

"Wow. You must be really smart to do that kind of stuff."

"It's not that hard, really."

"Well, if you're so smart, how about writing that paper we have due tomorrow for me?"

Charlie rolled his eyes, "Write your own paper. We've had two weeks to do it."

"Aw, Charlie! I thought we were friends!" John leaned down and started poking at random buttons, screwing up Charlie's coding, "See? I'm helping you?"

All of John's friends gave a big stupid laugh, and John joined them a moment later as he started to noogie Charlie.

"Hey! Stop that!"

"Aw, I just want to be friendly with you! We're buddies right? And buddies write each other papers now and then or they get beat up, right?"

Charlie was on the verge of giving in when a sweet and melodic voice carried over the laughter, "Excuse me? May I sit here?"

Everyone looked over to see a gorgeous red head with long hair, brilliant green eyes and a body to die for. She was wearing tight jeans, stylish black boots, and a pale green top with a slightly less than modest cut to the neckline. Charlie stuttered out, "Um… you mean here? With me?"

"Yes." The girl nodded.

"Oh, uh… yeah!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" John waved his hands, "This guy is a nerd, baby. Why don't you come with us and we'll see if we can't find a good time somewhere?"

The girl shook her head, "No thank you. I am here to work on my laptop computer, and cannot seem to get it to connect to this network. You called this young man a 'nerd', correct?" John nodded stupidly, "Oh, good. My friend Raven told me that if I ever had trouble with my laptop to seek the help of a nerd. I am glad to meet you, Mister Nerd!" the girl grinned a megawatt smile and grabbed Charlie's hand, shaking it vigorously.

"Uh… nice to meet you too…" Charlie grinned, "And you can call me Chuck."

"What a wonderful name!" the girl clapped her hands and took a seat right next to him, placing her laptop down and opening it up, "Would you be willing to help me connect, Chuck?"

"Definitely." Charlie nodded, "Um… what's your name?"

"Oh! I have forgotten my manners. The people of Earth tend to call me Starfire, however in such an informal setting, you may call me Koriand'r, or simply Kori."

As John and his friends started stupidly, Charlie grinned hugely, "Okay, Kori. Show me what kind of system you have, and I'll see if I can help you."

"Wonderful!" Kori bounced in her seat, then turned to the other boys, "I did not mean to take your friend from you… perhaps he can see you later? We are busy right now."

"Um…"

Kori gave him a tactful few moments to try and process what she had said, then spoke slowly, to be sure he understood, "That means I want you to go away." She pointed to the door.

John seemed to snap out of his funk then and shook his head, "Uh… yeah… see you later, Charlie."

"Yeah, see ya, John." Charlie was already checking Kori's network settings. "I think I've found your problem, Kori."

"Truly?" she turned back to him and the last thing John saw before leaving the café was Starfire, one of the hottest Titans (really one of the hottest heroes in the world) leaning over on Charlie's shoulder and giggling softly as he showed her how to work her computer.

One of his friends walking out next to him said, "Dude, you realize that Titan chick just passed you by for a total nerd, right?"

John's cheeks flared red, and he punched the speaker in the arm, "Shut up." he growled.


	7. Speedy's Evaluation

The Day to Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Opening notes – Because the shipper in my wont let me leave them alone, a bit of Roy/Raven fluff. These Evaluation bits will continue throughout this series, and now I have some fun little stories I can do with Speedy and Raven too.

Standard disclaimers apply.

* * *

**Speedy's Evaluation**

* * *

**Part One**

Robin and Cyborg looked up from the kitchen counter as Raven staggered into the main room or the Tower. She had a travel bag slung over one shoulder, and her cloak looked slept in. Beast Boy walked in behind her a few moments later.

Robin and Cy exchanged glances as they heard what was obviously the middle of a conversation. Beast Boy was waving his arms, "Oh, come on! My flying isn't _that_ bad…"

"It wasn't the flying, Beast Boy." Raven muttered, "It was the constant yammering on about how pretty Kole looked."

"She did!"

"So call her and ask her out."

"Wha…?" Beast Boy's mouth dropped open, "I can't do that! She and Gnarrk have… you know… a thing!"

"She harbors no romantic feelings for Gnarrk that I can sense." Raven replied, "Now please, I only got a few hours of sleep on the flight home, so I'd like to go to bed."

"Aw! I was hoping we could bust out the mancala set!"

"No, Beast Boy." Raven paused by the entrance to the kitchen and sniffed the air. Staring with dull eyes at the two Titans within, she asked, "Is that barbecue chicken for everyone?" she asked.

Cyborg grinned, "Everyone except Beast Boy, who we have spinach puffs for."

"You made spinach puffs?" Raven arched an eyebrow.

Robin rolled his eyes behind his mask, "No, I made them. Cy just gagged and staggered around like the world was ending."

Raven seemed to consider something for a moment, then turned back to Beast Boy, "Alright, you get a few games of mancala. But only until I'm done eating."

"Sweet!" The green changeling dropped his overnight bag and dashed off, "I'll go get the set!"

Raven sighed, but smiled a little in spite of herself. She also dropped her duffle on the ground outside the kitchen and walked in, taking a seat at the booth off to one side. She looked up in gratitude as Robin placed a cup of tea in front of her.

"We saw the docking bay alert flashing when Beast Boy brought the T-Ship in. Figured you could use a mug."

"Thank you." Raven replied with as much feeling as he had ever heard in her voice. He chuckled lightly as Cyborg hummed behind him and checked the chicken.

"How was your interview with Gnarrk, anyway?"

"The same as it was last year. He may be intelligent in his own right, but he's still a caveman… since he and Kole see so little action in the field, I wasn't too concerned."

"Still, it was a long trip?"

"Beast Boy has gotten much more mature in the past few years, but he's still a little much to be alone with for thirty hours of flight time to the arctic and back."

"I hear that." Robin chuckled again.

Raven sighed and sipped her tea. She leaned back and closed her eyes as she let the heat of the kitchen wash over her, "My only consolation is that I'll get to sleep and rest for a few days before I have to do evaluations for the next two…"

"Heh…" Robin rubbed the back of his head, "About that…"

Raven peeled her eyes open a little and left them hooded, "What?"

Robin edged away a little, "Uh… I know you rescheduled so you wouldn't have to do all of them in the same day, but…"

Raven's hand shot out and grabbed Robin's shirt front. She yanked him down until they were almost nose to nose, "What are you trying to say, Richard?"

"Uh… Speedy couldn't make his reschedule… he's here at the Tower, and you have to do his evaluation either tonight or tomorrow morning."

Raven glared for several seconds, then let go of him. Grumbling as she stood up, she called over to Cyborg, "Save me some of that chicken for breakfast tomorrow… I've lost my appetite."

As she swept away, cloak trailing her, Robin called out, "Does that mean I should tell Speedy that his interview will be in the morning?"

Raven's only reply was to flip him off over her shoulder as she stepped on to the elevator.

As soon as she was gone, Robin sighed and turned back to Cyborg. The half-robotic teen was staring at him curiously. Robin arched an eyebrow, "What?"

"What did Raven just call you?"

Robin let out a noise of shock and began to stutter.

* * *

Robin found Speedy in the workout room.

With Starfire.

Growling low in his throat, Robin stalked in. Star was sitting on the sparring mats in her underwear, and Speedy sat in front of her wearing only a pair of boxers and his mask. They were playing poker.

Speedy scratched his head, as he looked at his cards, "You know Star, I wasn't really expecting you to be so good at this game…"

"I gathered that when you suggested we begin to take off our cloths rather than play with small mettle bits of currency as we do when Beast Boy, Cyborg, Robin and myself play." She giggled.

"Is that where you learned the expert poker face?" Speedy chuckled.

"Oh yes. Robin is quite good at it."

Robin stepped up next to them and cleared his throat.

Both turned to look at him with different expressions. Speedy grinned nervously and Starfire blushed to the roots of her hair. She quickly grabbed her skirt, boots and top and held them to her chest, "Eh… heh heh… I… this is not what it appears as, Robin…"

"Honestly Kori, I'm not that mad at you. I know you were just trying to teach Speedy a lesson by making him strip to nothing."

"Yes, well…" her blush began to fade, "Tamaranians have far different views on nudity and its place in society than Earthlings do… so you know… I'm not at all embarrassed by this."

"I know." Robin nodded, "I need to talk to Speedy for a bit though. Could you….?"

"Of course." Star nodded with a smile and floated to the door, "I will see you both at dinner."

"Kori?" Robin called after her.

"Yes?" she looked back over her shoulder, making sure to keep her shapely rear end facing him and a coy look on her face as she winked over her bare skin.

Robin blushed a little, "Uh… you might want to put your clothes back on before you get too far… Beast Boy is out there somewhere and I think he might explode if he saw you like that."

Star giggled but didn't put her clothes back on as she floated out the door with a wave. Robin sighed and turned back to Speedy with a glare that could kill.

Speedy looked up from where he was pulling his pants on and rolled his eyes under his mask, "Aw, come on. I thought you said you weren't all that mad!"

"I said I wasn't mad at her." Robin folded his arms over his chest.

"Right." Speedy pulled his uniform top back on and adjusted it a little, "So what do you want?"

"To know why you were playing strip poker with a girl you know I like."

"Heh." Speedy shrugged, "What? She's hot!"

"And not terribly modest. Don't exploit her to get your cheep thrills, Roy."

"Oh, we're doing first names now, huh? Does 'Kori' know yours, Dick?"

"No." Robin looked away.

"Then don't go staking claim where you have no right."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"Nothing. I'm just yanking your chain."

"God, I hate you…" Robin chuckled anyway.

"Well, I'm guessing you came to find me for a reason."

"Yeah. To tell you that Raven is pissed at you, and that your interview is tomorrow morning. I'd also advise you not to tell her you changed the time back because you have a date the day she rescheduled you for."

Speedy grinned wolfishly and nodded, "Okay. Thanks." As he started to walk out of the training hall, he paused. Turning back, he took on a more friendly and sincere expression, "You should tell her your name, man. Tell her everything."

Robin turned to him and arched an eyebrow, "And you think you're an expert on the situation because…?"

"Because the only thing she did the whole time she was taking her clothes off for me… was talk about you." Speedy clicked his tongue as he stepped out the door and pointed at his friend, "See you at dinner in a few, Dick." And he was gone.

Robin sighed and looked up at the ceiling, "Damn it all… I hate it when he's right…"

* * *

Raven was typing away at a laptop computer on her bed when a knock came at her door. She glanced at the time on the computer screen and saw that it was half past eleven.

"Who's disturbing me at this hour?" she wondered aloud. As far as the rest of the Titans knew, she was sleeping. She'd actually woken up from her nap several hours ago, and had been writing down some personal thoughts in a kind of memoir (kind of like a Raven-Dearest). With a shrug, she closed the laptop and sat it aside, then hovered over to her door and opened it.

Standing on the other side was Speedy, a grin on his face, two wine glasses in one hand, and a bottle of wine in the other. He shook them at her, "Mind if I come in?"

Raven was well and truly flabbergasted. He was dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt, even having foregone his mask (she was wearing jeans and a simple blue top herself) and he was grinning like an idiot. She sensed a little trepidation about him, but also a great deal of curiosity, something she never failed to sense in his presence. He was always wondering about something.

"Speedy… what the hell are you doing here?" she looked around him, "Is Beast Boy out there? Please tell me this is a joke."

"Sorry, but no. And call me Roy. I know you know my name."

"Roy…" Raven rubbed her eyes, "Is there a reason you came to my door at a late hour, offering me alcohol which, by the way, Robin would kill you for having in the tower, and asking to come in?"

"Well, at first I was going to use the excuse that we never really hang out, just the two of us, but I thought that was kind of lame. And while I was wracking my brains for a better reason, I found something."

"What's that?"

Roy handed her the bottle of wine, then reached down and picked something up from next to the doorframe. He lifted Raven's duffle into view and showed it to her.

"You found my over night bag that I left in the living room?" Raven arched an eyebrow.

"Yes. Then I found the lacy bra and the thong fit for a high price call girl. I also discovered some rather racy lesbian pornography magazines, and that's what my new excuse is. Why do you have dyke porn in your overnight bag, Raven?"

Raven's eyes were by this time wide as dinner plates, and her mouth was hanging open. After a moment, she stuttered out, "You went though my bag?"

"Yep. Thought we covered that already."

"Why did you go through my bag?"

"Because I was looking for an excuse to spend some time with you. It just turned out better than I thought it would."

Raven groaned and her hand shot out. She grabbed his shirt front and dragged him into her room, making sure the door shut behind him. She quickly engaged the lock, then shoved him to the middle of the room.

He looked her up and down and arched an eyebrow, "I've never seen your toes before."

Raven looked down at her bare feet then over at his stocking clad soles. She looked up at him, "The bra is exceedingly comfortable, which is important to a girl with decent sized breasts."

"I _have_ noticed yours are a decent size."

"Trust me, I know. I wear thongs under my leotard because they're the only thing that doesn't stick out the sides… I mean, really they're utilitarian."

"Uh huh."

She sighed, "Fine, I like how they feel too. The porn was from Kole. She's about as lesbian as you can get, and she's been trying to convert me for the past year."

"How's that going?"

"Not so hot." Raven's eyes burned black for a moment, and the cork popped out of the bottle in her hand, "Set the glasses down on the vanity over there so I can pour."

Speedy laughed a little, "You're actually going to drink wine with me?"

"I don't see why we should let this go to waste before Robin finds out we have it." Raven didn't smile back, "After we have our wine and we're comfortable, you can tell me the real reason you came here tonight."

Speedy's smile lost some of its mirth and he nodded, "Okay."

* * *

A few minutes later, Raven was sitting back against her pillows, propped up against the wall. Speedy had brought an excellent Riesling from the mid-eighties, and she sipped the pale liquid after inhaling the flavor of it first. Sloshing the wine about in her mouth a little, Raven tasted it thoroughly before swallowing.

Speedy arched an eyebrow, "Well?"

"Very good. Hints of peach and apricot."

"And not too dry." He grinned, "One of my favorites."

Raven sipped again and eyed the young man sitting cross legged at the foot of her bed critically, "I can't figure you out, Roy."

"Coming from you, I'll take that as a compliment."

"Don't get me wrong, I can still read your emotions well enough… but I can't understand why you feel some of the things you feel."

"What do you mean?"

"Like… when you knocked on my door, for instance. You were a little nervous, probably because you were about to ask to be let into the room of the one Titan that has banished everyone from her space, but you were also curious beyond belief. You always are. And you were even a little excited."

"Why shouldn't I be?" he looked at her quizzically.

"Everyone else is too scared to try and come in here. They know I don't like it."

"Well, it really wasn't that hard to get you to let me in, so they can't be trying hard enough."

Raven waved her free hand, "And that's the thing with you. You'd stand next to a nuclear explosion to see how it worked if you thought you'd live."

"I have always been curious about that…"

"See?" Raven sat forward a little ways, "Why do you want to know everything?"

"Why not? I like to learn new things, meet new people…" he looked at her meaningfully, "Get to know my friends better."

"Don't think I missed the spike in your arousal." She warned.

"Oh, I know you can sense it. Take it as a compliment."

"I try to, trust me." Raven rolled her eyes, "You boys have just grown more and more horny over the years."

"Heh." Speedy chuckled a little, "Yeah, we have, haven't we?"

"Yes." Raven looked at him closely, "So you just came here tonight to get to know me better?"

"Well, that and Robin mentioned I'd made you angry by pushing up the evaluation. I wanted to offer peace," He motioned to the wine, "and say I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted." Raven sipped her wine again, frowned at the empty glass and held it out for a re-fill. Speedy obliged, and sat the bottle aside once more.

"See, Raven, here's what I don't get about you; why do you hole up in here, and give off the creepy leave-me-alone vibe? You obviously enjoy good company, and I know you love your friends… so why?"

Raven thought about it, "I enjoy good company when there's good conversation to be had, rather than an abundance of knock-knock jokes. And while I do love my friends very much, especially the Titans West, sometimes they lack the facilities to hold a conversation that will hold my interest."

"So they're too stupid."

"Essentially, yes."

"That's kind of harsh."

"A little. But it's true to an extent."

"I guess. We're all kind of stupid some times."

"True." They lapsed into silence for a time, and sat drinking their wine in peace. Speedy finished his, refilled it, and then refilled Raven's when she held out her glass once again.

"Go easy on this stuff Raven… it's not cheep crap."

"I know… it's just so good." She licked her lips a little, "You'll have to tell me where you got it."

"Oliver Queen." Speedy grinned.

"Ah. Green Arrow."

"My 'Dad' is a little more lenient than Robin's."

"Ha." Raven shook her head, "Batman is far too stiff, even for my tastes."

"You've met him?"

"He does my evaluation every year." Raven said. Speedy stared.

"You get evaluated too?"

"Of course. I'm a Titan, just like the rest."

"Huh." Speedy scratched his head, "I guess I never really thought about the evaluator needed to be evaluated."

Raven just nodded and stared at him. After a few minutes, Speedy started to squirm, "Stop staring at my soul."

"Roy…" Raven's voice was soft, almost pleading, "Why did you really come here?"

He smiled a little, "Like I said, to get to know you better-"

"I know." Raven cut him off, "Why?"

"I don't understand the question."

"Of course not. You're here, whether you know it or not, to try and find my weaknesses so you can turn them against me tomorrow."

"What? Why would I-"

"Because you're hiding things from me… things you know I'll drag out of you later."

Speedy stood up rather suddenly. He glared at Raven, "What do you know? You don't really know me at all."

"That's true. But isn't that why we're here? Sitting on my bed, in my locked room, drinking wine and talking? Or was it just so you could have an excuse to stare at my chest?"

Speedy snapped his eyes up from where they rested on the aforementioned breasts, and blushed slightly, "Uh…"

"Really, don't worry about it. Beast Boy does it all the time."

"Yeah… sorry."

"Roy, I said don't worry about it. Go get some sleep, and we'll talk in the morning… in a more official capacity."

Speedy swallowed hard, but nodded. He sat his half full wine glass down on the vanity, then turned and left the room without another word. Raven watched him go, and sighed when her door shut behind him. She pulled her laptop towards herself once again and flipped it open. After a moment of thought, she began to type.

* * *

**Part Two**

Speedy was sipping coffee thoughtfully as he stared out the large open windows of the Tower's living room. The eyes of his mask narrowed as he recalled the conversation with Raven from the night before, and he sighed.

"What the fuck am I doing?" he muttered to himself.

"You're drinking coffee." Robin was suddenly right next to him, and it made Speedy jump. He almost sloshed his half full mug of coffee down his front.

"Jesus, Dick!"

Robin winced and reached out, slapping Speedy across the side of his head, "Robin."

The archer looked over his shoulder and saw Beast Boy and Cyborg sitting on the couch, playing video games (they had been there since the night before, as they had been on overnight monitor duty). They seemed engrossed in their game, but Speedy didn't miss the small twitch of Beast Boy's left ear.

"Whatever." He turned back to the windows.

"What's wrong?" Robin sighed.

"Nothing."

"Bullshit."

"Fine. Raven."

"What's wrong with Raven?"

"Evaluation."

Robin sighed and rubbed his eyes though his mask, "I'll need more than one word answers, Speedy."

Speedy sighed and mirrored the motion, "Sorry… she'll be calling any second, and they we'll talk and… after last night it'll be hard and awkward."

Robin dropped his hand and stared with a slightly open mouth, "You didn't like… try to sleep with her, did you?"

"Uh… well, that was my _intention_, but it didn't happen that way…"

"How _did_ it happen?"

Speedy grinned, "Well, I got her out of her leotard, but she refused to loose the cloak, so we kept getting tangled up inside it, and-"

"Speedy…" Robin sighed again, but grinned despite himself.

"Okay, okay… we talked. Out of uniform, as friends. That's all."

"And you drank wine."

"And we- hey! How'd you know about that?"

"I was in the kitchen when Raven came down and added the bottle to the recyclables."

"And you didn't question her about it?"

"Speedy, who else would have given her a twenty-year-old bottle of wine? I just wanted to know what the two of you were doing." Robin grinned down at his friend, "Good to see there's at least one girl in the world you can't get to take her clothes off for you."

"Yeah, even your girlfriend did it…"

Robin grinned broadly, "Yeah, she did, didn't she?" and he punched Speedy in the arm.

"Owwww…." The archer rubbed the bruise, "Bastard…"

"Whatever. You're a dick."

"No, you're a Dick." Speedy grinned.

"Shut the hell up."

"Heh…" Speedy looked away, "Hey… about the last mission I did…"

"No." there was a sudden steel in Robin's voice, and he lowered his tone as he crouched down next to Speedy and spoke to him privately, "Raven doesn't know. No one knows. And it stays that way… there's a reason I have you doing these things, Roy… you're the only one I can trust."

"I know… I just… I don't think I can do it anymore…"

"Too much for you?"

"I just don't like hiding things from my friends." Speedy turned a drawn face to Robin.

Robin frowned back, "Dude, you have a secret identity."

Speedy sighed, then called back over his shoulder, "Hey, BB! What's my name?"

"Speedy." The changeling called back without looking away from the screen, "Watch your six, Cy."

"I got it."

Speedy rolled his eyes, "My real name, numb nuts."

Cyborg and Beast Boy both replied without looking away from the screen, "Roy Harper."

Robin almost fell over, "What the… you told them?"

"It's my name to tell, Robin." Speedy sighed, "Maybe you should think about doing the same thing."

"Roy! Damn it all!" Robin stood up and was about to lecture his friend when the archer's com began to buzz. He pulled it out and flipped it open.

"Yeah, this is Roy."

_"Speedy."_ It was Raven, _"It's time. Come on up."_

He nodded at her, "I'll be right there."

Raven waved a hand_, "And tell Robin to take a few deep breaths, count to ten, then go hit something." _

Speedy looked up, but Robin was already turned away, breathing deeply. The archer saw him sticking fingers out as he counted silently. Looking back to his com, he saw that Raven had already signed off.

With a depressed sort of sigh, Speedy stood up, "Do these two even know how to say hello or goodbye?"

* * *

Speedy walked into Raven's office five minutes later. She was seated behind her desk, yellow legal pad in front of her, with her cloak on the coat rack by the door. She was typing information into her computer and glanced up at him as he sat down in the squishy chair in front of the desk, "I'll be right with you."

"Take your time." Speedy sat back and looked around the office. The wall behind the desk housed hundreds of books on psychology, psychiatry, and various other subjects ranging from hypnosis to mental disorders. He let his eyes trail down around the large oak desk, the pale, white walls, and the various pieces of art work that he knew from previous interviews were all painted by artists down in Jump City's largest park.

Without really meaning to, Speedy looked back over at Raven. His eyes trailed up her figure from her waistline (narrow, but toned, not skinny) then up to her breasts. She was finely formed, and without her cloak to hide the tight leotard she wore, he was able to see the fullness of her figure. Perfectly rounded, held high in place by her costume… it was a wonder criminals were able to pay attention to anything else when fighting her.

His eyes moved up once again and he saw she was staring at him. He blushed, "Uh…"

"Like I said last night, don't worry about it." Raven smiled lightly, "Take off your mask, Roy." He did so and she nodded, "I do the same thing to Richard in his interviews."

"He was being kind of an ass earlier."

"I sensed it." Raven nodded, "But we're not talking about him. Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be, I suppose."

"Good. The basics then." Raven picked up her legal pad, "Have you started using any illegal substances since your last evaluation?"

"Yes." Roy didn't blink.

Raven looked up, "Have you started drinking more than just wine as well?"

"Yes."

"Have you seen any qualified doctors in the last six months since the last evaluation?"

"No."  
"One out of three isn't bad, I guess."

"Whatever."

"How often to do drink?"

"Not too much. Once or twice a week, and never really in excess. Just to get a little buzzed and take the edge off a long day."

"Self medicating is never a good idea, Roy."

"I know." He looked away from her, "I've been under a lot of stress lately."

"What drugs are you doing?" she was writing quickly on her pad of paper.

"I smoke a bowl every now and then… I skipped out on patrol a few weeks ago and went out with a group of kids I met at a club on a mission, and we did a few lines of coke."

"Really? How was that?"

"Burned."

"That's what I hear. Roy, you know this is all self destructive and unwise… especially for a super hero. What gives?"

"Like I said… I've been under a lot of stress lately…"

"Why?"

"I've been… hiding things from my friends…"

"Like?"

"Missions… Robin has me doing some… covert work."

"Covert?"

"As in I'm not supposed to talk about it."

"Is that so?" Raven leaned forward, "We don't normally talk about work details when we're here, but I think we have to this time. What does he have you doing?"

Roy grit his teeth, "I really hate saying this, but it's classified."

"Classified?" Raven blinked, "Roy, the Titans don't have classified case files. It was one of the precepts Robin and I founded the team on."

"Well, he saw fit to change that rule."

Raven leaned back and closed her eyes for a moment, "I'm going to kill him."

"Why? He's the leader, Raven. It's his call."

"I see you agree with him, then."

"Not really. Just following orders like a good little soldier."

"We're not the army."

"Raven, each one of us is a one man or one girl army. And this shit Dick has me doing… it's heavy."

"You have to tell me, Roy."

"I… I want to, Raven. But I can't."

"Why not?"

"Robin doesn't want me to. He's trusting me with this…"

"Roy." Raven had a distinct edge to her voice, "I'm not asking as a fellow Titan anymore… this is as your official evaluator, and as your friend. Whatever Richard has you doing it's driving you to drugs and booze. You're slipping."

"I know."

"I don't want to see you fall like this."

"I know."  
Raven stood up and walked around her desk. She tossed her note pad aside and pulled up the second squishy chair, sitting down and taking his hands in hers, "Then tell me."

He looked up at her and she could see the stress on his face as much as she could sense it in his soul, "I'm doing undercover work. Tailing people."

"Who?"

"Some baddies still at large. Some Titans."

"Richard has you spying on other Titans?"

"Some of them need spying on."

"Who?"

"Red Star is kind of a concern due to his volatile nature, and I think I've tailed Jinx half a dozen times now."

"Are there more?"

"Yes." Speedy nodded miserably, "Dick's concerns are founded… I just don't like how he's going about it."

"Richard has a natural sense of distrust for everyone. It's taken him years to open up to me, and you've known him so long that he has to trust you… but we're it, Roy. I just never thought he'd… go so far."

"I don't like it. I told him I want to quit doing it."

"I think that's a good idea. Let him spy if he wants to, but he shouldn't be dragging you into this too."

Roy blinked and a tear trailed down his face, "I think I want to quit the Titans."

Raven blinked at him, and held his hands tighter, "Where did that come from?"

"It's… a lot, you know?" he sniffed a little, "I'm mentally able to do the job still, but… I don't know if I want to. You guys may know my identity, but the rest of the world doesn't. I could drop out and go to school, or go work for Ollie… nail hot chicks nightly and not have to worry about being alive tomorrow or not."

Raven looked down at their hands, "Is that what you really want?"

"I don't know. Maybe." Speedy sighed, "I couldn't work for Ollie… but school sounds like fun. I could major in some kind of engineering…"

Raven narrowed her eyes, "What about the girls?"

"Wha?" Speedy looked at her, confused.

"What about nailing hot chicks nightly? Is that what you really want?"

Speedy grinned a little, "Well, I can't say I'd complain about it…"

Raven shifted, "You shouldn't quit the Titans."

"Why do you think that?"

"Because we need you. You're a strong leader, a skilled combatant, and a friend to everyone, world wide."

Speedy reached on hand up, the other still holding Raven's and tipped her chin up, so she was looking him in the eye, "Those are Robin reasons. I asked why _you_ think I shouldn't quit."

"My personal opinion isn't the issue here."

"It is to me."

"Fine. I don't want to see you with other girls."

"Other girls? As opposed to who? You?"

"Shut up, Roy."

"No… you like me, don't you?"

Raven slowly nodded, "Very much."

"And… oh my God… you want to like… date me or something?"

"No… that… wouldn't be fair to you."

"Raven… I'm not really in love with you… but I think I'd like to be."

"Not an option."

"Why not?"

She struggled with the words for a moment, but eventually gave in and let them spill from her mouth, "I can't love you. It's not possible. I'd loose control of my soul self and it would consume my physical shell, unleashing demonic terror on the world. But that doesn't mean I don't want to _be_ loved." The words were coming so fast now she didn't know how to stop them, "I want someone to care about me… to love me and cherish me. I want to know that there's always going to be someone there for me when I need them, no matter what. And it's selfish. It's so selfish, because I can't love back. All I can't sink that deep into someone and say the three words that would seal the deal… all I can do is express gratitude for their unwavering devotion."

Speedy stared at her, "I don't know what to say."

"Say you'll stay on the team… and that you'll ignore everything I just said."

"I can't do that."

"What?"

"I can't do both, Raven. Either I stay on the team and we try to make this work, or I quit the team and you never hear from me again."

"That's not fair." She hissed.

"You should have thought of that before you opened your mouth."

"You… I can't believe you. Roy, we can't have a relationship. It's not possible."

"Who says you have to do anything? I just want to fall in love with you."

"And what do you get in return? Heart ache when I can't love you back?"

"Sex isn't love."

"I'm not having sex with you."

"Not _right now_, Raven. Eventually."

"So you just want to stay on the team on the off chance you might get to sleep with me someday."

"That and I really like you. I could use a best friend like you."

Raven blinked and her eyes softened a little, "I could use one like you, too."

"Then what are we beating around the bush for?" and Speedy leaned in and kissed her.

Raven was stunned into inaction for a few seconds, then yanked away from him, "What the… you son of a bitch! I didn't tell you you could…" she trailed off, an angry look on her face, then lunged at him and kissed him back. Roy grabbed her shoulders, keeping her from falling out of her chair.

In a matter of seconds, Raven had deepened the kiss, drawing him to her in an eager manner. He pulled her out of her chair and pushed her around, shoving the pen holder and file box off the side of her desk as he laid her back on it, pressing down on top of her, still kissing. Raven ran her hands up his back and put one palm on the back of his skull, shoving his mouth into hers harder. Speedy ran a hand along her left thigh, pulling her leg up and forcing her legs open, giving his pelvis access to hers. As he pushed his weight down on her, she moaned into his mouth from the pressure he was putting on a very sensitive part of her. Once his right hand snaked up and started to massage her breasts through her costume, she pulled his head away from her and grinned up at his slightly wild visage.

"Not on the first date, buddy."

"Heh…" Speedy moved his hands to more neural territory and they continued to kiss for another solid minute.

Suddenly, the alarm started blaring all through the Tower.

Speedy reached down and pulled out his T-Comp, flipping it open and hailing their leader, "Robin, what's up?"

_"Killer Moth and… Kitten."_

"You don't sound happy."

_"Star looks like she's about to kill someone."_

"I bet. We'll be down in two minutes."

_"Take your time. And wash you face. Raven's spit is all over you."_ And Robin signed off.

Raven groaned, "I really hate him sometimes."

"Me too." Speedy got up off of her and helped her to her feet. Raven straightened her hair for a moment, then turned to him, "Want to grab some lunch after we watch Starfire thrash Kitten?"

"You bet. 'Cause then we'll have had the first date, and I'm one step closer to-"

"Watch the hormones, Harper." Raven handed him his mask, "You're not going to quit?"

"I think I got a better offer."

"We'll have to take it slow… don't expect me to start making out with you every ten seconds…"

"I know… I just… it'll be good to have a friend I can count on for anything."

"Even sex." Raven rolled her eyes.

"Hey, you said it."

"You thought it."

"So? I'm a guy. I'm allowed to."

"Right." Raven shoved him towards the door, "Keep a leash on it, Speedy."

"I'll let you keep a leash on me…"

"Bondage comes much later in our relationship."

"Really? I have handcuffs."

"I have a four post bed."

"Sounds like a plan."

"Sounds like you need to get your ass in gear before we're late."

"Whatever. You want me."

"I want _you_ to want _me_. Get it right."

"That's what I said."

Their voices trailed off as they left the office and the doors shut. The place was still and quiet for several moments, with the files and pens on the floor, the computer still humming away, and Raven's forgotten legal pad with it's pages crinkled from where she had been lying on it sitting lonely and forgotten on the desk.

A few seconds later, the doors opened and Raven flew in. She grabbed her cloak off the rack by the door and pulled it on quickly. She glanced around the room, then sighed. "What the hell am I thinking?" she muttered, then smiled, "Ah well. It'll be… fun." And she locked the door from the inside before teleporting away.

* * *

Closing Notes - Eh. I couldn't resist. No other version of Speedy's evaluation I've written came anywhere close to being as entertaining as this one. And now I have a little more fodder for tying together all these unconnected one-shot bits of flash fiction. As always, reviews are appreciated and signed reviews will get responses if I have the time and energy. So ask any questions you may have, and feel free to comment on anything you want. 


	8. Mistake

The Day to Day

Teen Titans Fan Fiction by Jacob McDonald

Opening Notes – The thing I like most about these stories is that when I come up with a good little idea, I can just pound it out and post it. This one I wrote in five minutes. For those of you wondering, yes, I'm working on my other stories too. I just wrote another 3000 words of Ties That Bind, and while I have JCSymph on hold, I pick at that when I have the time as well. I'm just really busy right now, and don't have much time for Fan Fics. Sorry to everyone who follows those stories, but it's going to be a little while before I can get back to updating them on a regular basis.

Standard disclaimers apply.

* * *

**Mistake**

* * *

"Stop!" Robin bellowed as he charged down the street after a fleeing Doctor Light, "Give yourself up, or we'll be forced to take you down, Light!"

"Who's we?" the Doctor shouted back, "You're the only one chasing me, Bird Brain!"  
Robin scowled. While he hated the insult, he hated the fact that Light was right even more. The other Titans were busy elsewhere.

Doctor Light suddenly stopped and turned on Robin. The Boy Wonder skidded to a halt and threw a hand over his eye mask even as the villain threw a large pulse of white light across the area. Robin winced against the blinding explosion of photons, but held his ground, and even hurled a bird-a-rang at the last spot he'd seen the Doctor.

A grunt of pain told him his shot had been true, and he grinned, opening his eyes. He saw Light running away again, having gained some ground, but now limping from a bruised leg.

"Got you." Robin muttered as he took off again. He ran down the street, jumped a trash can, fired off a grappler, and was pulled off his feet into the air when the cord found purchase on a ledge some seven stories up. He swung through the air and came down right in front of Doctor Light.

"Give it up, Doc." Robin grinned as he slugged his enemy in the gut, then kicked him into the building they were next to.

Doctor Light winced and held out a hand. Robin ducked the blast of light energy that melted a lamp post behind him, and came up with singed hair.

"You son of a-" he started, but Light was already running away again. Robin blinked once, "Wow… he can kind of move when he's scared…" then took off after him again. He saw the Doctor leap over a fence and into a construction site. Robin grinned and jumped the fence as well.

"Ha! Now I've got y-" Robin landed right on a discarded shovel and it popped up rapidly, slamming its handle directly into the Titan leader's face. He went down without a sound and lay on the ground, stunned and unable to regain his senses.

Doctor Light stopped running some fifteen feet away and looked back. Grinning when he saw his pursuer down, he quickly ran back over before Robin could get back up, "Now I've got you right where I want you!" he crowed, and picked up the shovel, "Say goodbye, Robin!"

The shovel was snatched out of his hands suddenly and he swung nothing but air down at the Boy Wonder. Pausing, he turned around to see what had happened to his improvised weapon.

Cyborg grinned down at him and cracked his titanium knuckles, "Goodnight, Doctor."

Light whimpered once before Cyborg punched him in the face hard enough to send him flying ten feet. The white and black clad villain landed in a heap and didn't move.

Cyborg took a few steps, inspected the downed man, then nodded at a job well done. He kicked at the dirt on the ground for a second, then his eye slowly turned down to the crumpled form at his feet. He grinned a little, "That was real smooth Robbie."

Robin's faint and pained voice wafted up to him, _"Shut up, and help me hold my skull together."_

Closing notes - Review!_  
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